not one has since had a summons or a warrant served upon him; and that two aged persons alone now receive assistance from parochial pay. In short, the natural tendency of the plan is, to raise the poor man in the scale of being; to make him a better citizen,—a better man,—and a better christian.

'Now the parochial minister who has commuted his tithes for land, will possess additional facilities for conferring this great blessing upon his parishioners. Such kindness would naturally attach them to him by a new and powerful tie: and this argument should not be overlooked, among the many other advantages which would arise from the proposed commutation of tithe.

'On the question of Lay Impropriations, the author does not feel himself called upon to offer any remarks. He would only observe, that he sees no valid ground why enactments, which may be deemed necessary in the case of the clergy, should not, with equal justice, he extended to the case of lay impropriators also.'

These, then, are the proposals, the realization of which the Bishop of Bath and Wells is persuaded will have the effect of restoring harmony between the people and the ministers of the gospel. The interest of all, people and clergy, require it. The bishop is anxious for a good understanding to be maintained between the relative parties, for it is the interest of the poorer community that it should be so, for who is the individual that they apply to in sickness and in sorrow, in perplexity of any kind, but to their pastor; and if his circumstances do not allow him to redress their pecuniary wants, as from his office he ought to do, the bishop informs us, that it is because the clergyman is not able to spare the means from his income. His lordship declares, that upon an accurate calculation, he has found, that the clear average value of all the livings in the diocese of Bath and Wells, very little exceeds 2001. per annum. When we consider the charges of a long academical education which the candidates for the sacred office must go through, and remember that they belong to a class which is somewhat elevated in the ranks of society, we shall certainly not be inclined to say that the parochial clergy of England are overpaid. The following passages with which the bishop concludes, are highly creditable to his understanding and his heart:

To those few who have shown a disposition to riot, and to resist forcibly the present payment of tithes, the author would wish to offer a few words of friendly admonition. Most earnestly would he recommend to them, a compliance with the laws of the land, until those laws are altered by legislative enactment. Deeds of violence and brute force can tend only to frustrate the objects, which the perpetrators of them have in view. It is the part of wisdom to submit to temporary evils, rather than have recourse to supposed remedies, which might, in all probability, prove worse than the disease.

In the last place, it may be objected that the proposed commutation will not be acceded to by the proprietors of land. The answer, however,

is clear and conclusive. The proprietors of estates will be determined in their acceptance or rejection of the terms proposed, by motives of selfinterest, and by those alone. Now, the amount which they would yearly save, by the non-payment of tithes, would certainly exceed in value the annual rent of that proportion of their estates, which they might deem it advisable to sell, for the redemption of their tithes. On this point, therefore, independently of all other considerations, there can be little doubt as to the ultimate decision of the land proprietors.

• To restore however to the Clergy their due hold on the affections of the people some Commutation of Tithes must be adopted. The times call for, the sacred cause of religion itself demands it. Our places of divine worship have been in some instances, of late, less regularly attended; in others, even profaned. And they who disregard the ordinances of their God, are little likely to discharge their duties to man. If an hereafter can be disbelieved, or doubted, what is there to restrain the wicked thought from breaking out into the guilty deed? All therefore who wish well to the peace and good order of society; all who are desirous of advancing the happiness of the human race, in time and eternity, should endeavour to support the character and station of the Ministers of the Gospel. For it is theirs to point out to the people "the way, the truth, and the life." It were, however, vain to expect the attainment of this great object, so long as tithe forms, as at present, a line of demarcation between them. As well might we attempt to stop the waves of the ocean, as to restrain the turbulent feelings of the people, under the present popular excitation. The cause then, we see, of religion itself is involved in the issue of that measure, which it has been the most anxious wish of the author to illustrate and to recommend.

• Experience bears us out in the assertion, that in proportion as nations have become more religious, in the like degree have they become more prosperous and happy; but that, as they have grown corrupt and immoral, so also have they hastened to their decline and fall. The history of our own kingdom confirms the truth of the former part of this observation. For, looking back to the past, there are no people who have been more alive to the force of moral and religious obligations, none more blessed by Providence, than the inhabitants of this favoured isle. Such is the state of our present condition: but may the parallel reach no farther! Esto perpetua!

Although the attention of the author has been confined solely, and exclusively, to the important question of tithes, yet he cannot conclude without observing, that no one would give a more unhesitating assent, none a warmer support than himself, to any prospective regulations, which, without invading the existing rights of individuals, might secure a better provision for the poorer labourers in our vineyard; and which might thus obtain for them, the increased affections and respect of an attached and grateful people. And the present state of our Church, it may be observed, would afford peculiar facilities for the accomplishment of such a measure, according as ecclesiastical vacancies in sinecures might happen to occur.

'Such then, briefly, are the arguments which have induced the author to recommend a general Commutation of Tithes for land. His anxiety upon the subject has arisen from the deep conviction of his mind, and the feelings of his heart, that religion towards God, and charity towards man, are the pillars upon which alone public prosperity and private happine

can be erected. Around them are entwined all the virtues and graces of social life; everything that connects man with man; the creature with his Creator and Redeemer. Fully sensible, however, both of the difficulties and the importance of the question, and duly aware that it is, periculosæ plenum opus alex, yet still, these things have appeared comparatively light in the balance; and he now ventures to submit to public consideration, with all the weight which any opinion of his can carry along with it, that measure, which in his judgment, is well calculated to increase the usefulness of the Clergy, and, by the same means, to improve the morals of the people.'

ART. XIII.—Present State of Representation in England and Wales; being an Alphabetical Arrangement of all the Counties, Cities, and Boroughs, sending Members to Parliament; with an Appendix, containing a Summary of the Representation in England and Wales, the Reform and Boundary Acts, and a copious Index. By MICHAEL HENRY RANKIN, Solicitor. London: Baldwin and Cradock. 1832.

Ar a moment when the eyes of the nation are directed to the proceedings of a regenerated House of Commons, and when the principles on which a representative government is founded become the subject of universal discussion, it may not be altogether useless to refer to those lights which history may shed upon this important subject.

The earliest accounts which we possess of English parliaments represent that the whole of the members, Lords and Commons as they were, sat together. The period when the Commons were separated from the Lords, is generally believed to have been the reign of Edward III. In the Rolls of Parliament we find an entry of the date of the 40th of Edward III. in which the Lords are directed to meet en la chambre blanche, and the Commons en la chambre de peinte.

Bishop Hurd is of opinion that the constitution itself generated the House of Commons, and that the zeal of these authors is not to be com. mended; that their aim was to serve the cause of liberty, but at the expense of truth, and without the least necessity.'

The origin of the House of Commons is buried in obscurity. However this may be, there certainly seems no sufficient proof that any parliament, constituted on the general plan of the present one, has sat previously to that which was called in the 23d of Edward I:

And it appears, that for a length of time afterwards the House of Commons exercised no power, and could exercise no power, other than that of consenting to the levying of taxes, for which express purpose it appears to

have been called into existence, agreeably with the intention of that important clause of the act made in the 25th Edward I., called the Statute de tallagio non concedendo, which stipulated that no tax or aid should be imposed without the consent of the peers, knights, and burgesses of the realm.

'Indeed, the composition and character of the House of Commons in the era from the reign of Edward I. to that of Edward IV. inclusive, forms a curious and amusing subject of contemplation. We have just seen that the duties of a member were not very complicated, and for these it appears he was then paid by his constituents; according to Lord Coke, the salary of a knight of the shire, was four shillings per diem, that of a citizen or burgess, two shillings. During the period just mentioned, though we find that writs were issued to 170 cities and boroughs, the members actually returned varied prodigiously. Nine of the boroughs to which writs were sent, actually took no notice of them, and were not afterwards summoned, Twenty of them never returned members more than once, and out of the whole number of 170, there were in all sixty places which did not regularly return members, owing either to the sheriff not issuing his precept to them, or to the poverty of the place, or to the negligence of the returning officer. Again, by the writs issued in the 26th and 45th years of the reign of Edward III. only half of the number of knights, citizens, and burgesses, who had come to Parliament in the years preceding, are summoned. In the one case the writ stated it to be for saving labour and expense, and in the other to take as few as possible from the harvest.-(See Male on Elections, p. 5. et seq. and the authorities there cited.)-From the reign of Henry the Eighth too, until that of Charles II., the number of members was increased considerably.'

A change, however, in the whole character of the House was now threatened by the progress of improvement in every department of the state. The grand principle conceded by the Statute of Wills, which enabled peers to dispose of their possessions, and the increase of commerce which resulted from the operation of this law, soon communicated a vast degree of influence to the people. The invention of printing accelerated the success of all the existing elements of improvement, and by degrees, the commonalty attained so much power, that they began to think of asserting their right to exercise that power. They vindicated their claim, and we know

the result.

There is nothing certain handed down to us with respect to the way in which the knights and burgesses of ancient times were elected for seats in the parliament. That the right of election was extensive may be inferred from the fact, that the first statutes to be found on the subject are those of Henry VI. which restricted the right to persons having a freehold of the clear yearly value of forty shillings, a qualification which remained in full force up to the last year. By these statutes copyholders were excluded from voting; at first the matter was doubtful: but an Act of George II. declared for the exclusion: and the principle of the latter act was right, because the land held by copyroll was in the lord himself, and the enjoyment of the profits only in the tenant.

The rights of election for cities, towns, and boroughs, were very different in different places. Some places enjoyed it by presentation, some by tenure, and others again by an express charter. As these rights are, with some exceptions and restrictions, preserved, it may be desirable to explain their nature exactly :

1. Voters by burgage tenure. A burgage is defined to be "an entire, invisible tenement, holden of a superior lord of a borough by an immemorial certain rent, distinctly reserved, to which the right of voting is incident." It need hardly be remarked, that the word tenement includes land as well as houses. As to the quantity of interest in a burgage, though it is generally freehold for life or in fee, yet both leaseholders and copyholders paying a burgage rent have been admitted to vote. The question whether a tenement is or is not a burgage tenement, being a question of prescription, the affirmative may be established by the usual modes of proving other prescriptions. Time immemorial in a legal sense is previous to the reign of Richard I. 2. Corporate freemen or free burgesses. The corporate right of election is comparatively modern, and is prescribed by charters which are mostly existing. The greater number of places that owe their privilege to charter, have had it conferred on them since the reign of Edward VI. The first case in which the right of election was conferred by charter was that of Great Wenlock by Edward IV., the last, that of Newark upon Trent by Charles II. It is imagined that the king's prerogative in this respect has ceased since the articles of union. The right of voting in elections of representatives for corporate towns is sometimes in the whole corporation, comprising an indefinite number of freemen or free burgesses, and in some places it is confined to a select part of the corporation, frequently definite in number and generally including only the chief magistrate, aldermen, and common council, or the mayor and capital burgesses. And in either case it is not necessary that the corporation should remain complete and entire in all its parts, in order to exercise the right of voting. In the Helston case, the mayor and ail the aldermen except one were gone, and there were only six corporators left, viz. the one remaining alderman and five freemen, and these were held capable of electing representatives.

The elective franchise is, in some corporate towns, as will be seen in the body of this work, vested in freemen of all descriptions, viz. freemen by birth or patrimony, by servitude, by marriage with a freeman's daughter (this species is rare) and freemen by purchase or redemption: and also in honorary freemen, who are made at the will and pleasure of the corporation without any antecedent title. In other places the privilege is confined to one or two of these classes coupled with restriction as to residence, &c.

'Another species of voters in cities and boroughs, are the freeholders. They are not however restricted as to the value of their estate, as in counties.

The remaining electors in cities and boroughs are made up of inhabitants of different descriptions. It is to be observed, however, that the right of voting by inhabitants' in the full and general meaning of the word 'inhabitants,' does not exist (except, perhaps, in Preston) but is generally restrained by the addition of some other qualification, as paying scot and lot, being a householder or potwaller, or being legally settled. The terms

scot